Chief minister moots plan to reclaim sea to build coastal road on stilts

Despite the Centre’s refusal to build a coastal ring road on stilts, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan on Tuesday said the state would ask the ministry of forest and environment (MoEF) for permission to build the road by reclaiming land from the sea.

Despite the Centre’s refusal to build a coastal ring road on stilts, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan on Tuesday said the state would ask the ministry of forest and environment (MoEF) for permission to build the road by reclaiming land from the sea.

HT Image

Chavan told the legislative assembly on Tuesday that the state would give a presentation to MoEF minister Jairam Ramesh later this month. “As the MoEF has relaxed coastal regulations, we decided to build the coastal road. But we realised that building roads on stilts would be expensive, so we want it to build it by reclaiming land,” he said.

The freeway will link the Bandra-Worli sea link and help ease traffic. It will replace the proposed second link between Worli and Nariman Point.

Chavan refused to review the metro project. “We will build the Colaba-Bandra stretch underground, the other routes will be elevated because the city’s geography doesn’t allow such structures.”